Event Feature: 2009 NBA Draft
by Bodog Sportsbook | Jun 25 2009
So you think you know your hoops? Bring it on. We've got
live betting ready to roll for Thursday's
2009 NBA Draft at Madison Square Garden. The folks at ESPN will be on hand starting at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, so you'll be right there in the draft huddles of all 30 teams as they make their final decisions.
If you've been following the expert mock drafts as they've evolved over the last couple of months, you know the score. Teams have been wheeling and dealing to move up or down the draft order; because each team has different needs, the mock drafts have been struggling to keep up. The wonderful thing about
live betting is that almost all of the wheeling and dealing will be done by the time NBA commish David Stern hits the podium.
Here's our mock Top 10 for 2009, factoring in the trades that had been made (or appeared to be nearing completion) as we went to press. We're expecting more changes, so again, don't be married to a certain player at a certain draft position. Focus instead on the teams, their needs and who's still on the board as the event unfolds.
1. Los Angeles Clippers: Blake Griffin, PF, Oklahoma
2. Memphis Grizzlies: Hasheem Thabeet, C, Connecticut
3. Oklahoma City Thunder: James Harden, SG, Arizona State
4. Sacramento Kings: Ricky Rubio, PG, DKV Joventut
5. Minnesota Timberwolves: Tyreke Evans, SG, Memphis
6. Minnesota Timberwolves: Stephen Curry, PG, Davidson
7. Golden State Warriors: Jordan Hill, PF, Arizona
8. New York Knicks: Jrue Holiday, PG, UCLA
9. Toronto Raptors: DeMar DeRozan, SG, USC
10. Milwaukee Bucks: Jonny Flynn, PG, Syracuse
This draft is heavy on guards and very light on international players - Rubio is the only Euro expected to go in the lottery. His handlers are apparently steering him away from Memphis and Oklahoma City; it's possible the Grizz will draft him anyway and trade him later, just as they did with Steve Francis 10 years ago. Rubio won the Spanish ACB League's Defensive Player of the Year honors this year and is generally considered the No. 2-skilled player in the draft.
It's as close to sure as sure can be that Griffin is going to the Clippers at No. 1. He was this year's John Wooden Award winner with 22.7 points and 14.4 rebounds per game for the Sooners. Griffin looks like the kind of player who can make Clippers fans forget about their last No. 1 guy: Michael Olowokandi. But will Griffin crack this list of the Top 10 first-overall picks? All 10 have gone on to win the MVP award.
1. Magic Johnson (1979, Los Angeles Lakers)
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1969, Milwaukee Bucks)
3. Shaquille O’Neal (1992, Orlando Magic)
4. Oscar Robertson (1960, Cincinnati Royals)
5. LeBron James (2003, Cleveland Cavaliers)
6. Tim Duncan (1997, San Antonio Spurs)
7. Hakeem Olajuwon (1984, Houston Rockets)
8. David Robinson (1987, San Antonio Spurs)
9. Allen Iverson (1996, Philadelphia 76ers)
10. Bill Walton (1974, Portland Trail Blazers)
